Franz-Josef Ulm

Ulm grew up in Fürth/Bavaria and Erlangen as son of Udo Ulm and Hertha Ulm, both Structural Engineers. Following National Service as a nurse in a surgical hospital in Erlangen, he studied Civil Engineering at the Technical University of Munich, where he graduated in 1990 with a "Diplom Ingenieur (Bauingenieur)"(Eq. MSc) degree. Prior to concluding his studies in Munich, he was sent to the Ecole National des Ponts et Chaussee as an exchange student, and completed his Diplomarbeit (Master's Thesis) at the {{ill|Laboratoire central des ponts et chaussées|fr}} (LCPC) in Paris (now IFSTTAR), the Central French Civil Engineering Laboratory. He continued his studies at Ecole National des Ponts et Chaussees, as a research assistance at LCPC, receiving a Docteur-Ingenieur degree (eq. Ph.D.) from ENPC in January 1994, with a specialization in Materials and Structures. During this time, he worked closely with Olivier Coussy on the English translation of Coussy's book "Mechanics of Porous Continua". The collaboration of Ulm with Coussy led to the development of the Continuum Chemomechanics theory which has been applied by Ulm and co-workers to Early–Age Concrete and risk evalDiuation of concrete cracking relevant for massive concrete structures in innovative bridge and tunneling applications; to prediction of premature deterioration of concrete structures due to the Alkali-Silica Reactions; and the deleterious effects of calcium leaching of concrete relevant for nuclear waste storage applications. In 1996, he became Chargé de Recherche (Research Scientist) of the French Ministry of Public Works. During his tenure at LCPC, he was head of the Research group of concrete and concrete composite behavior and modeling. In 1998, he obtained the habilitation degree from the Ecole Normal Superieur de Cachan with a habilitation thesis on chemomechanics of concrete materials and structures.

Ulm joined MIT in January 1999, where he specialized in experimental nano- and micromechanics of cement-based materials, shales and bones. With his research group, he developed statistical nanoindentation techniques for hydrated nanocomposites; an indentation technique that permits via statistical analysis to link chemistry and mechanical behavior at 10s of nanometer length scales. In 2007, his group discovered that cementitious materials at nanoscale exhibit a nanogranular behavior driven by particle-to-particle contact forces. This nanogranular origin was found to drive much of the strength and durability performance of cementitious materials, such as the long-term creep behavior and fire resistance. A similar nanogranular nature was found for shales and bones. In 2008, he joined forces with a group of physicists and computational material scientists to combine experimental nanoindentation investigations with molecular and meso-scale simulations of cement hydrates. Specifically, the collaboration with Roland Pellenq, a CNRS Research Director and senior research scientist at MIT, allowed identification of the molecular structure of calcium-silicate hydrates, the binding phase of concrete which lends its strength and durability to concrete at engineering scales. By incorporating concepts of glass physics and soft matter physics into cement science, Ulm and co-workers showed by means of a molecular combinatorial approach that concrete's fundamental strength could be elevated without changing the chemistry of its constituents, i.e. Calcium, Silica and Water. The handshake of molecular simulation techniques with experimental nanoscale experiments opened a novel way to address the concrete sustainability challenge to reduce the environmental impact while sustaining its role as the backbone material for housing, shelter and infrastructure worldwide. The challenge led, in 2009, to the foundation of the Concrete Sustainability Hub at MIT (CSHub@MIT). This novel industry–academia partnership between the Portland Cement Association (Skokie, Illinois), the National Ready Mixed Concrete Association (Silver Spring, Maryland) and MIT aims at reducing the environmental footprint of concrete, while enhancing its resilience from materials to structures and urban community scale.

As of 2024, Ulm is working on carbon-cement supercapacitors, a technology that is being developed for large-scale energy storage. The basic concept of creating a supercapacitor from simple cement materials and carbon black has been demonstrated, but the technology is far from being a fieldable product.{{Cite journal |last1=Chanut |first1=Nicolas |last2=Stefaniuk |first2=Damian |last3=Weaver |first3=James C. |last4=Zhu |first4=Yunguang |last5=Shao-Horn |first5=Yang |last6=Masic |first6=Admir |last7=Ulm |first7=Franz-Josef |date=2023-08-08 |title=Carbon–cement supercapacitors as a scalable bulk energy storage solution |journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences |language=en |volume=120 |issue=32 |doi=10.1073/pnas.2304318120 |issn=0027-8424 |pmc=10410735 |pmid=37523534|bibcode=2023PNAS..12004318C }}{{Cite web |title=The cement that could turn your house into a giant battery |url=https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20240610-how-the-concrete-in-your-house-could-be-turned-into-a-battery |access-date=2024-06-19 |website=www.bbc.com |language=en-GB|first=Tom|last=Ough|date=11 June 2024}}{{Cite web |title=This Supercapacitor Is Made From Cement |url=https://spectrum.ieee.org/supercapacitor |access-date=2024-06-20 |website= IEEE Spectrum |language=en|first=Sarah|last=Wells|date=3 August 2023}}

Compared to other forms of bulk energy storage, the proposed carbon-cement supercapacitor material would have a high power density.{{Fact|date=November 2024}}

• 2002 Robert L'Hermite Medaille, RILEM{{Cite web|url=https://www.rilem.net/about/honors-awards-500181|title=RILEM|last=RILEM|website=www.rilem.net|language=fr|access-date=2018-12-26}}
• 2005 Walter L. Huber Civil Engineering Research Prize{{Cite web|url=https://www.asce.org/templates/award-detail.aspx?id=625&all_recipients=1|title=Walter L. Huber Civil Engineering Research Prizes {{!}} ASCE {{!}} Past Award Winners|website=www.asce.org|access-date=2018-12-27|archive-date=2018-11-12|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181112061021/https://www.asce.org/templates/award-detail.aspx?id=625&all_recipients=1|url-status=dead}}
• 2010 Maurice A. Biot lecture at Columbia University{{Cite web|url=https://cee.mit.edu/ulm-gives-biot-lecture-at-columbia-university/|title=Ulm gives Biot Lecture at Columbia University|last=mituser|date=2010-10-12|website=MIT CEE|language=en-US|access-date=2018-12-26}}{{Cite web|url=http://www.columbia.edu/cu/civileng/ling/biot/|title=Biot Lecture|website=www.columbia.edu|access-date=2018-12-26}}
• 2011 Stephen Brunauer Award, American Ceramic Society{{Cite web|url=https://cee.mit.edu/paper-by-cee-researchers-wins-stephen-brunauer-award/|title=Paper by CEE researchers wins Stephen Brunauer Award|last=mituser|date=2011-07-12|website=MIT CEE|language=en-US|access-date=2019-01-06}}
• 2012 Theodore von Karman Medal, American Society of Civil Engineers{{Cite web|url=https://cee.mit.edu/franz-ulm-to-receive-asces-von-karman-medal/|title=Franz Ulm to receive ASCE's von Karman Medal|last=mituser|date=2012-04-10|website=MIT CEE|language=en-US|access-date=2018-12-26}}
• 2013 Best paper award 2012: Acta Geotechnica{{Cite web|url=https://cee.mit.edu/paper-by-grad-student-amer-deirieh-and-professor-franz-josef-ulm-wins-best-paper-prize-from-acta-geotechnica/|title=Paper by grad student Amer Deirieh and Professor Franz-Josef Ulm wins Best Paper Prize from Acta Geotechnica|last=mituser|date=2013-03-13|website=MIT CEE|language=en-US|access-date=2019-01-06}}
• 2013 Engineering Mechanics Institute Fellow{{Cite web|url=https://www.asce.org/engineering-mechanics/emi-fellows/|title=EMI Fellows {{!}} ASCE|website=www.asce.org|access-date=2019-01-06|archive-date=2020-07-27|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200727032354/https://www.asce.org/engineering-mechanics/emi-fellows/|url-status=dead}}
• 2013 Engineering News Record Award of Excellence{{Cite web|url=https://www.construction.com/about-us/press/enr-to-honor-construction-industrys-top-25-newsmakers-april-18.asp|first=Kathy|last=Malangone|title=ENR to Honor Construction Industry's Top 25 Newsmakers at Award of Excellence Gala|website=www.construction.com|access-date=2018-12-26}}
• 2014 Elected Member of European Academy of Sciences and Arts{{Cite web|url=https://cee-dev.mit.edu/ulm-elected-to-european-academy/|title=Ulm Elected to European Academy|last=mituser|date=2014-09-12|website=MIT CEE|language=en-US|access-date=2018-12-26}}
• 2022 Elected Member of National Academy of Engineering{{Cite web|url=https://www.nae.edu/270224/National-Academy-of-Engineering-Elects-111-Members-and-22-International-Members/|title=National Academy of Engineering Elects 111 Members and 22 International Members}}

{{reflist|refs=

{{Cite book|title=Mechanics of Porous Continua|last=Coussy|first=Olivier|publisher=J. Wiley & Sons|year=1995|location=Chichester, UK}}

{{Cite journal|last1=Coussy|first1=Oliver|last2=Ulm|first2=Franz-Josef|date=1996|title=Creep and plasticity due to chemo-mechanical couplings|journal=Archive of Applied Mechanics|volume=66|issue=8|pages=523|doi=10.1007/s004190050088|issn=0939-1533|bibcode=1996AAM....66..523C}}

*{{Cite journal|last1=Ulm|first1=Franz-Josef|last2=Coussy|first2=Olivier|date=1998-11-01|title=Couplings in early-age concrete: From material modeling to structural design|journal=International Journal of Solids and Structures|volume=35|issue=31–32|pages=4295–4311|doi=10.1016/s0020-7683(97)00317-x|issn=0020-7683}}

• {{Cite journal|last1=Hellmich|first1=Christian|last2=Mang|first2=Herbert A.|last3=Ulm|first3=Franz-Josef|date=2001-09-01|title=Hybrid method for quantification of stress states in shotcrete tunnel shells: combination of 3D in situ displacement measurements and thermochemoplastic material law|journal=Computers & Structures|volume=79|issue=22–25|pages=2103–2115|doi=10.1016/s0045-7949(01)00057-8|issn=0045-7949}}
• {{Cite journal|last1=Ulm|first1=Franz-Josef|last2=Coussy|first2=Olivier|date=2001-05-01|title=What Is a "Massive" Concrete Structure at Early Ages? Some Dimensional Arguments|journal=Journal of Engineering Mechanics|volume=127|issue=5|pages=512–522|doi=10.1061/(asce)0733-9399(2001)127:5(512)|issn=0733-9399}}
• {{Cite journal|last1=Ulm|first1=Franz-Josef|last2=Coussy|first2=Olivier|last3=Bažant|first3=Zdeněk P.|author-link3=Zdeněk P. Bažant|date=1999-03-01|title=The "Chunnel" Fire. I: Chemoplastic Softening in Rapidly Heated Concrete|journal=Journal of Engineering Mechanics|volume=125|issue=3|pages=272–282|doi=10.1061/(asce)0733-9399(1999)125:3(272)|issn=0733-9399}}

{{Cite journal|last1=Ulm|first1=Franz-Josef|last2=Coussy|first2=Olivier|last3=Kefei|first3=Li|last4=Larive|first4=Catherine|date=2000-03-01|title=Thermo-Chemo-Mechanics of ASR Expansion in Concrete Structures|journal=Journal of Engineering Mechanics|volume=126|issue=3|pages=233–242|doi=10.1061/(asce)0733-9399(2000)126:3(233)|issn=0733-9399}}

{{Cite journal|last1=Ulm|first1=Franz-Josef|last2=Torrenti|first2=Jean-Michel|last3=Adenot|first3=Frédéric|date=1999-10-01|title=Chemoporoplasticity of Calcium Leaching in Concrete|journal=Journal of Engineering Mechanics|volume=125|issue=10|pages=1200–1211|doi=10.1061/(asce)0733-9399(1999)125:10(1200)|issn=0733-9399}}

{{Cite journal|last=Ulm|first=Franz-Josef|date=1999|title=Couplages thermochémomécaniques dans les bétons (un premier bilan)|journal=Études et Recherches des Laboratoires des Ponts et Chaussées. Série Ouvrages d'Art}}

{{Cite journal|last1=Constantinides|first1=Georgios|last2=Ulm|first2=Franz-Josef|date=2004-01-01|title=The effect of two types of C-S-H on the elasticity of cement-based materials: Results from nanoindentation and micromechanical modeling|journal=Cement and Concrete Research|volume=34|issue=1|pages=67–80|doi=10.1016/s0008-8846(03)00230-8|issn=0008-8846|url=https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-03680253/file/Constantinides2004.pdf }}

{{Cite journal |last1=Akono |first1=Ange Therese |author-link=Ange-Therese Akono |last2=Reis |first2=Pedro Miguel |last3=Ulm |first3=Franz-Josef |date=2011-05-20 |title=Scratching as a Fracture Process: From Butter to Steel |url=https://dspace.mit.edu/bitstream/1721.1/65375/2/Akono-2011-Scratching%20as%20a%20Frac.pdf |journal=Physical Review Letters |volume=106 |issue=20 |pages=204302 |bibcode=2011PhRvL.106t4302A |doi=10.1103/physrevlett.106.204302 |issn=0031-9007 |pmid=21668232 |s2cid=1176619 |hdl-access=free |hdl=1721.1/65375}}

{{Cite journal|last1=Ulm|first1=Franz-Josef|last2=Vandamme|first2=Matthieu|last3=Bobko|first3=Chris|last4=Alberto Ortega|first4=Jose|last5=Tai|first5=Kuangshin|last6=Ortiz|first6=Christine|date=2007-09-01|title=Statistical Indentation Techniques for Hydrated Nanocomposites: Concrete, Bone, and Shale|journal=Journal of the American Ceramic Society|volume=90|issue=9|pages=2677–2692|doi=10.1111/j.1551-2916.2007.02012.x|issn=0002-7820|citeseerx=10.1.1.363.8536}}

{{Cite journal|last1=Constantinides|first1=Georgios|last2=Ulm|first2=Franz-Josef|date=2007-01-01|title=The nanogranular nature of C–S–H|journal=Journal of the Mechanics and Physics of Solids|volume=55|issue=1|pages=64–90|doi=10.1016/j.jmps.2006.06.003|bibcode=2007JMPSo..55...64C|issn=0022-5096|hdl=20.500.14279/1522|hdl-access=free}}

{{Cite journal|last1=Vandamme|first1=Matthieu|last2=Ulm|first2=Franz-Josef|date=2009-06-17|title=Nanogranular origin of concrete creep|journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences|volume=106|issue=26|pages=10552–10557|doi=10.1073/pnas.0901033106|pmid=19541652|pmc=2705587|issn=0027-8424|bibcode=2009PNAS..10610552V|doi-access=free}}

{{Cite journal|last1=DeJong|first1=Matthew J.|last2=Ulm|first2=Franz-Josef|date=2007-01-01|title=The nanogranular behavior of C-S-H at elevated temperatures (up to 700 °C)|journal=Cement and Concrete Research|volume=37|issue=1|pages=1–12|doi=10.1016/j.cemconres.2006.09.006|issn=0008-8846}}

{{Cite journal|last1=Ulm|first1=Franz-Josef|last2=Abousleiman|first2=Younane|date=2006-06-15|title=The nanogranular nature of shale|journal=Acta Geotechnica|volume=1|issue=2|pages=77–88|doi=10.1007/s11440-006-0009-5|s2cid=128482605|issn=1861-1125}}

{{Cite journal|last1=Tai|first1=Kuangshin|last2=Ulm|first2=Franz-Josef|last3=Ortiz|first3=Christine|date=2006-11-01|title=Nanogranular Origins of the Strength of Bone|journal=Nano Letters|volume=6|issue=11|pages=2520–2525|doi=10.1021/nl061877k|pmid=17090084|issn=1530-6984|bibcode=2006NanoL...6.2520T}}

{{Cite journal|last1=Pellenq|first1=Roland J.-M.|last2=Kushima|first2=Akihiro|last3=Shahsavari|first3=Rouzbeh|last4=Van Vliet|first4=Krystyn J.|last5=Buehler|first5=Markus J.|last6=Yip|first6=Sidney|last7=Ulm|first7=Franz-Josef|date=2009-09-08|title=A realistic molecular model of cement hydrates|journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences|volume=106|issue=38|pages=16102–16107|doi=10.1073/pnas.0902180106|pmid=19805265|pmc=2739865|issn=0027-8424|bibcode=2009PNAS..10616102P|doi-access=free}}

{{Cite journal|last1=Ioannidou|first1=Katerina|last2=Krakowiak|first2=Konrad J.|last3=Bauchy|first3=Mathieu|last4=Hoover|first4=Christian G.|last5=Masoero|first5=Enrico|last6=Yip|first6=Sidney|last7=Ulm|first7=Franz-Josef|last8=Levitz|first8=Pierre|last9=Pellenq|first9=Roland J.-M.|date=2016-02-08|title=Mesoscale texture of cement hydrates|journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences|volume=113|issue=8|pages=2029–2034|doi=10.1073/pnas.1520487113|pmid=26858450|pmc=4776460|issn=0027-8424|bibcode=2016PNAS..113.2029I|doi-access=free}}

{{Cite journal|last1=Bauchy|first1=Mathieu|last2=Abdolhosseini Qomi|first2=Mohammad Javad|last3=Ulm|first3=Franz-Josef|last4=Pellenq|first4=Roland J.-M.|date=2014-06-07|title=Order and disorder in calcium–silicate–hydrate|journal=The Journal of Chemical Physics|volume=140|issue=21|pages=214503|doi=10.1063/1.4878656|pmid=24908022|bibcode=2014JChPh.140u4503B|issn=0021-9606|hdl=1721.1/110659|hdl-access=free}}

{{Cite journal|last1=Masoero|first1=Enrico|last2=Del Gado|first2=Emanuela|author-link2=Emanuela Del Gado|last3=Pellenq|first3=Roland J.-M.|last4=Yip|first4=Sidney|last5=Ulm|first5=Franz-Josef|date=2014|title=Nano-scale mechanics of colloidal C–S–H gels|journal=Soft Matter|volume=10|issue=3|pages=491–499|doi=10.1039/c3sm51815a|pmid=24651715|bibcode=2014SMat...10..491M|issn=1744-683X|url=https://eprint.ncl.ac.uk/fulltext.aspx?url=196411/36C00603-135A-4559-A211-791EFC3E2E50.pdf&pub_id=196411}}

{{Cite journal|last1=Abdolhosseini Qomi|first1=Mohammad Javad|last2=Krakowiak|first2=Konrad J.|last3=Bauchy|first3=Mathieu|last4=Stewart|first4=Krystle L.|last5=Shahsavari|first5=Rouzbeh|last6=Jagannathan|first6=D.|last7=Brommer|first7=D.B.|last8=Baronnet|first8=A.|last9=Buehler|first9=Markus J.|date=2014-09-24|title=Combinatorial molecular optimization of cement hydrates|journal=Nature Communications|volume=5|issue=1|pages=4960|doi=10.1038/ncomms5960|pmid=25248305|pmc=4200522|issn=2041-1723|bibcode=2014NatCo...5E4960A}}

{{Cite journal|last1=Van Vliet|first1=Krystyn|last2=Pellenq|first2=Roland|last3=Buehler|first3=Markus J.|last4=Grossman|first4=Jeffrey C.|last5=Jennings|first5=Hamlin|last6=Ulm|first6=Franz-Josef|last7=Yip|first7=Sidney|date=2012-04-09|title=Set in stone? A perspective on the concrete sustainability challenge|journal=MRS Bulletin|volume=37|issue=4|pages=395–402|doi=10.1557/mrs.2012.55|issn=0883-7694|doi-access=free|hdl=1721.1/77557|hdl-access=free}}

{{Cite journal|last1=Abdolhosseini Qomi|first1=Mohammad Javad|last2=Noshadravan|first2=Arash|last3=Sobstyl|first3=Jake M.|last4=Toole|first4=Jameson|last5=Ferreira|first5=Joseph|last6=Pellenq|first6=Roland J.-M.|last7=Ulm|first7=Franz-Josef|last8=Gonzalez|first8=Marta C.|date=2016-04-01|title=Data analytics for simplifying thermal efficiency planning in cities|journal=Journal of the Royal Society Interface|volume=13|issue=117|pages=20150971|doi=10.1098/rsif.2015.0971|pmid=27097652|pmc=4874424|issn=1742-5689}}

{{Cite journal|last1=Sobstyl|first1=Jacob M.|last2=Emig|first2=T.|last3=Abdolhosseini Qomi|first3=Mohammad Javad|last4=Ulm|first4=Fanz-Josef|last5=Pellenq|first5=Roland J.-M.|date=2018-03-09|title=Role of City Texture in Urban Heat Islands at Nighttime|journal=Physical Review Letters|volume=120|issue=10|pages=108701|doi=10.1103/physrevlett.120.108701|pmid=29570321|issn=0031-9007|bibcode=2018PhRvL.120j8701S|hdl=1721.1/114808|arxiv=1705.00504|s2cid=118987192}}

}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ulm, FranzJosef}}

Category:1964 births

Category:Living people

Category:German civil engineers

Category:American scientists

Category:German emigrants to the United States

Category:MIT School of Engineering faculty

Category:People from Fürth

Category:Engineering educators

Category:Technical University of Munich alumni

Category:Engineers from Bavaria